Tag: Citadel NYC

April is New Homes Month and, according to data from the Commerce Department, there’s a number of reasons to celebrate. Not only do new homes offer buyers the advantage of having a brand-new house with all new plumbing, electrical, mechanical, and structural features but they also provide increased energy efficiency and more amenities. Simply put, new homes can offer things a home built 40 years ago can’t. They’re also a good indicator of the health of your local housing market and economy. Research from the National Association of Home Builders shows every 100 single-family homes built creates nearly 300 jobs, $28 million in wage and business income, and $11 million in tax revenue. In other words, new home construction helps the local economy in addition to offering buyers more choices and helping moderate prices. So far this year, buyer demand and consumer confidence have both been high and there’s an expectation that more new homes will be built to accommodate those prospective buyers. Granger MacDonald, NAHB’s chairman, says there’s reason for optimism. “Our builders remain optimistic about the market for newly-built single-family homes and consumer confidence is strong, which should set the stage for a strong spring home buying season,†MacDonald said. “Americans continue to place a high priority on homeownership and work hard to achieve this goal for their families.†More here.

The best defense against making avoidable mistakes is education. The more you know about something, the less likely you are to screw it up. So you’d think home buyers would want to learn as much as possible before heading out to find a house to purchase. After all, buying a house is major financial transaction and a serious commitment. And yet, surveys of potential home buyers consistently find that large majorities of them share in some common misconceptions about what it takes to buy a house and how the process should unfold. Recently, Fannie Mae’s Economic & Strategic Research Group interviewed real-estate agents, buyers, and loan officers in an effort to figure out why there isn’t more focus on homeownership education before buying. Not surprisingly, most of their answers boiled down to there not being enough time during the process to focus on education. But common misunderstandings about down payment requirements, financing options, and the added costs of homeownership can scare off buyers or lead them to make unwise financial decisions. That’s why it’s always important, as a buyer, to ask questions along the way. Though you may not have time for hitting the books, you can always lean on the expertise and knowledge of the professionals you hired to guide you along the way. More here.

It’s somewhat natural to want to break up the housing market into buyers and sellers. You’re either a homeowner looking for a home buyer or on the hunt for a new place to call your own. But though that’s the way a lot of us think about the real estate market, the fact is, if you’re in the process of selling a house, you’re likely also in the process of looking for a house to buy. And that complicates the transaction a bit more than say a renter looking to become a first-time buyer. Why? Mostly, it’s due to timing. And, according to one recent survey, that’s especially true these days. Because the number of homes for sale is lower than normal in many markets, home sellers are concerned about being able to find a house to move into once they’ve sold theirs. So much so that 65.6 percent of surveyed real estate agents said it’s the greatest challenge for sellers in their market. So what should a home seller do? Well, fortunately, there are options – whether it’s a contingency worked into the sale contract or an arrangement to stay with family in the interim. Whatever the particulars of your situation, your prospects as a buyer are something to consider when deciding when to put your home on the market. More here.